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New FSU basketball locker rooms are next phase of Tucker Center improvements

Since acquiring the Donald L. Tucker Center in 2013, Florida State has poured in millions of dollars to bring the multi-purpose arena up to date.

The next phase of arena improvements is underway with the Florida State men’s and women’s basketball teams getting brand new locker rooms in hopes of being up to par with other schools in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

The locker rooms have not had a full-blown renovation since 1981, and the FSU basketball programs have not benefited from a major renovation outside of the recent Civic Center improvements since the basketball practice facility was built in 2002.

“It’s long overdue,” said Karl Hicks, FSU deputy athletic director for external operations who is overseeing the project. “And what we’ve said to the university when we wanted to undertake this is we can’t be in the best basketball league in the country and hope to compete without having facilities like this.”

In the last two years, FSU has spent more than $12 million to improve the front of the house with new seats in the lower bowl, a new scoreboard above center court, a new sound system, and renovated concession stands and concourse areas.

In the back of the house, the new men’s and women’s lockers will be joined by a training area for both teams, and cost the athletic program about $5 million.

The school also has plans for a hospitality area near the rear of the building for courtside ticket holders, complete with a refreshment bar, standup tables and an accessible restroom. Ideally, the players will be seen by the ticket holders before taking the court on game days.

Both the locker room and lounge area improvements will be funded with donations from Seminole Boosters, Inc. The project, which began in May, is expected to be completed in December.

“It’s been a very exciting time for Florida State basketball,” said men’s coach Leonard Hamilton, who has been at the school since 2002. “I’m excited about the direction we’re moving in now and hopefully in a short period of time, the rest of the renovations will be complete.”

A Seminoles logo will grace the ceilings of the new FSU men's and women's basketball locker rooms in the Donald L. Tucker Center, expected to be completed in December 2016.(Photo: FSU athletics)

Hicks said visiting ACC coaches are coming to the Tucker Center and reporting back to their superiors about the improvements already happening in Tallahassee.

“If it’s making an impression on our opponents, you know it’s making an impression on some of the kids that are coming in,” Hicks said. “And let’s face it: you do it for recruiting purposes, and the primary reason you’re doing it is for the fans and for the experience.”

Now the athletic program is focusing on improving the arena for the coaches, players and future recruits for years to come.

Sue Semrau, who will enter her 20th season at the helm of the women’s program, said she has never had more than a pregame, halftime and postgame talk in the current locker rooms during her time on campus.

In a presentation to donors, Hicks provided a brochure that described the current state of the bare-bones locker rooms as “functional.” Photos of elaborate, upscale locker rooms and players’ lounges from Michigan, Notre Dame, South Carolina, Kansas State and Virginia were used to show the discrepancies.

Once this project is complete, FSU intends on building a players’ lounge and coaches’ offices above the locker rooms, which will cost another $5 million. Details are still in the works, Hicks said.

“They’re going to now feel like they have a very special home at the Tucker Center,” Semrau said of FSU's players. “It’s going to be a real home, and I think that’s really important to our program going forward.”